In the wake of Hathras gang rape case, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader Kanimozhi Karunanidhi held a candlelight vigil in Chennai along with other members of the women’s wing of the party. The vigil included approximately 150 protesters who marched towards the Raj Bhavan, Tamil Nadu governor’s official residence, demanding justice for the deceased Dalit woman’s family. However, the vigil was reportedly conducted without any permission from the authorities. Consequently, Kanimozhi and other members in the vigil have been detained.
Before getting detained, Kanimozhi addressed the fellow protestors and said, “A cruel rape happened in Uttar Pradesh, where a girl was brutally raped. The UP government is trying to hide the rape incident. Since BJP government has come to power, a crime against women has been rising," A cruel rape happened in Uttar Pradesh, where a girl was brutally raped. UP govt is trying to hide the rape incident.
Since BJP govt has come to power, crime against women have been rising: DMK MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi at the vigil in Chennai before being detained by the police https://t.co/Hdg1iurzbL pic.twitter.com/ZrxNWRYAku
— ANI (@ANI) October 5, 2020 reports.
According to a report by India.com, the candlelight vigil was announced by Kanimozhi’s half-brother and DMK President MK Stalin. While announcing, he claimed that the safety of women, minorities and members of SC/ST community has never been ensured in Uttar Pradesh. He alleged that their safety is “generally a question mark.”
Also Read: Protests Continue In Several Cities Over Hathras Gangrape
Furthermore, he also demanded that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s government should apologise to Congress President Rahul Gandhi as he was manhandled by UP Police on Saturday.
This is not the first protest in response to the Hathras gangrape case. The opposition parties are holding nationwide protests demanding justice for the deceased Dalit girl and her family. Reportedly, Congress parties had held a nationwide ‘Satyagraha’ and sit-in protest yesterday.
Subsequently, Congress workers of Maharashtra also held protest demanding justice for the deceased girl in Hathras gangrape case.
In Bengaluru also, people took to the streets. Women held placards that read “Hang Rapists”, “Dalit Lives Matter”, “End State Violence” etc. They even presented a skit about how rape ravages the country.
Reportedly, a mega rally and state-wide protest against the Hathras case will be organised in Kolkata by the Left and Congress parties on October 6. Left Front Chairman Biman Bose and Leader of Opposition Abdul Mannan of the Congress in a statement said, “Apart from the ghastly incident at Hathras in UP, we need to raise our voice against the rise in incidents of rape and murder of women in West Bengal."
Kanimozhi has always been active in protests against pressing national issues. She had participated in the anti-CAA-NRC protests also that happened in Chennai. According to reports, she along with other Chennaiites was detained for holding an anti-CAA-NRC protest. But the next morning, they were back on street resuming the protest. But this time the protest included drawing kolams (Tamil word for rangoli) with subversive messages and challenging police to arrest them.
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